In the Midst of Our Dreams
by prettylittletaylorswift
Summary: If there was anything in this world that Ezra loved, it was the knowledge that he and Aria had produced the life they had always dreamed of. Sure, it had its faults and life was by no means trouble-free, but it was something created from their love and hence, their definition of perfect. FUTURE FANFIC. Rated T just to be safe.
1. Chapter 1

**So there's this thing I do where I procrastinate even the things I love doing, so instead of updating Aria's Wishful Thinking like I know I desperately need to, I decided to start a new multi-chapter fic! Smart move...I know. ****Side note though: I promise I will update AWT soon!**

**But basically this is a fanfic set around ten years in the future, so Aria would be roughly twenty-eight and Ezra...well who knows how old Ezra is.**

**I'm a bit nervous writing this fanfic...just because I think I have commitment phobia with multi-chapters haha. I'll try my hardest to keep updating somewhat regularly and finish this story off, but I may need the occasional nudge sometimes.**

**I have two story arcs plotted out in my mind...I'm not sure whether I'll finish with the one, or continue onto the second. If I stop at the first one, this fic will be fairly short, maybe five-eight chapters? If I keep writing and go onto the second arc, this will probably be a lot longer. But we'll see how it all goes.**

**Anyway, I hope you enjoy!**

**I don't own Pretty Little Liars...**

As the soft ring of an alarm emanated from his cell phone and into the sleepy morning air, Ezra Fitz sighed in exhaustion and buried his head further under the bed quilt, succumbing to the heavy pull that was his slumber. After making it through a long and stressful week at work, waking each morning at six-thirty am and collapsing in bed well past midnight, Ezra cursed himself for not remembering to turn off his alarm and sleep in on this Saturday morning. Adding to his sleep deprivation and only making the morning harder to face was the fact that it was early December and the two-story house's heating was tired and hardly effective, so the temptation of a few more minutes sleep in the alluring warmth of his bed was too hard to ignore.

After what only felt like seconds later, a much louder ringing impatiently resounded from his cell phone, this time jolting Ezra to attention. Snatched from his dreams and rudely alerted to his senses, Ezra groaned into his pillow and pulled the warm quilt up and over his head in a feeble attempt to block out the horrible blaring of the alarm. _Perhaps Aria would silence it._ After a dreadful minute or two, it became quite clear the alarm was not going to go away on its own, and his wife was most certainly not going to save Ezra from the torture and turn it off herself. He scrunched up his nose in distaste before miserably emerging from the comfort of the blankets and reaching over to grab the wretched phone from the nightstand. Bleary eyed, Ezra managed to finally silence the alarm, and he sank back into the pillows in a sudden appreciation for the quiet of the morning air.

Much more content now, Ezra smiled softly to himself and rolled over onto his side, his arm reaching out to locate a smaller, warm body to snuggle into. The right side of the bed was empty however, and Ezra's arm only found more blanket. His smile faltered.

Sighing in disappointment, Ezra pressed his nose into the pillow next to his, and breathed in the fading, comforting smell of his wife. She had a delightful scent…one mixed of her berry-smelling shampoo, that expensive perfume Ezra had bought her last year, and home baked cookies. Aria smelt like home.

Distantly, Ezra could recognise the scent of brewing coffee and he could hear the gentle chatter of tiny humans. This alone was enough of an incentive to leave the warmth of the bed. He released a tired sigh once more before sitting up and stretching, cracking his back in a way that always made Aria wrinkle her nose up and cringe. Ezra chuckled to himself.

After throwing back the covers, Ezra stuck his feet in some slippers before trudging into the adjoining bathroom. Upon reaching the bathroom vanity, Ezra shook his head in exasperation as his eyes fell upon the mess Aria had left behind. Countless bottles and make up brushes and hair ties lay scattered everywhere, and Ezra nearly cracked a smile at the memory of Aria once insisting she was almost 'Spencer - tidy'. That was a joke if Ezra had ever heard one.

For a moment Ezra considered moving some of Aria's mess but decided against it. Aria hated her things being touched (she called her mess of a system 'organised chaos'), and Ezra wouldn't even know where to begin moving her things. What limited storage the small bathroom had, Aria had already filled up.

After splashing his face with water, and cursing as he almost knocked over several of Aria's expensive perfume bottles, Ezra switched off the bathroom light and headed out into the hallway. The scent of brewing coffee and the joyful sounds of a bustling kitchen perked Ezra's mood up considerably as he began treading down the stairs. If there was anything in this world that Ezra loved, it was the knowledge that he and Aria had produced the life they had always dreamed of. Sure, it had its faults and life was by no means trouble-free, but it was something created from their love and hence, their definition of perfect.

The moment Ezra stepped into the kitchen however, all romanticised musings vanished from his mind and were instead replaced with what could only be described as horror. The state of the kitchen was enough to dissolve Ezra's perky mood in an instant. Puddles of yellow liquid which Ezra prayed was only orange juice lay on the marble kitchen bench top, dripping steadily onto the wooden floors. Dozens of eggs lay half cracked or smashed on both the bench tops and the floor. Like snow, flour covered almost every imaginable surface of the kitchen, lining appliances and cookbooks, even the bowl of fruit Aria so proudly kept on display for decorative purposes. And standing proudly amongst the havoc, similarly decorated with flour and sticky liquids, were two little children, a boy and a girl, both wearing impish grins on their faces.

"Oh man..."Ezra ran his fingers through his hair in exasperation, unable to even verbalise his mixture of emotions. Despite feeling overwhelmingly frustrated and exhausted, he also recognised the unintentionality of the situation and couldn't help but bite his lip to suppress a smile that threatened to expose his complete adoration for the two children that stood before him.

"Daddy! We made you and Mommy breakfast!" The five year old boy with curly, brunette hair declared proudly as he pushed forward a plate holding a concoction that was enough to make Ezra's stomach churn.

"Oh wow… thanks buddy." Ezra smiled softly, tousling the boy's hair playfully, while his eyes surveyed the situation warily.

"Daddy!" The little girl, with looks strikingly similar to Aria's, squealed and grabbed onto Ezra's leg, jumping up and down. Ezra laughed and picked the three year old up, before hoisting her up and placing her onto the bench top.

"Here's some OJ too!" The brunette boy eagerly pointed to two glasses filled to the brim, overflowing and standing in puddles of the orange liquid.

"How are we going to clean all this up?" Ezra inquired with a shake of his head, looking expectantly from the wide, mischievous eyes of the little girl in front of him to her brother who stood eagerly next to Ezra.

The little boy's eyes widened. "Mommy's going to be so mad…" He shook his head nervously as the sudden realisation of the mess he and his sister had made descended.

"Let's just get this all cleaned up." Ezra declared before pressing a quick kiss on his daughter's brunette head.

* * *

Half an hour later, the kitchen was looking significantly better, and though the two children weren't exactly the best help, together with Ezra, the three of them made it work.

"Liam, can you go find the mop? We're going to need to wipe this mess off the floor."

"Sure Daddy!" Ezra chuckled to himself as he watched his son proudly venture off with his newly designated responsibility. He was growing up so fast. _Both_ Ezra's kids were growing up so fast. It felt like only yesterday when Aria first fell pregnant with Liam…

_The sudden vibrating of his cell phone startled Ezra, and he looked down at the caller ID on his phone in surprise. It was currently around 1:30 pm and Ezra had just finished his lunch break and had resumed marking his way through the horrifically high pile of essays his sixth period AP English class had left him with. _

_Aria's face flashed on the phone's screen and Ezra smiled in surprise. "Aria?" He lifted the phone up to his ear, eager for the unintentional break._

_For a moment though, the other end was silent. Then came a small sob. "Aria?" Ezra asked again, though this time his voice was filled with panic. A million different scenarios skidded through his mind and he stood up from his desk in alarm._

"_Ezra?" Aria's tiny voice broke through, causing both immense relief and concern for Ezra._

"_Are you okay? Where are you?" _

"_I'm okay…I just –" Aria let out a deep breath before continuing, her voice stronger than before. "Can you go to the drugstore on your way home? There's something I need."_

_And so then Ezra had spent the rest of his working day in a complete state of disbelief. While Ezra and Aria had been married for just under two years, and had certainly talked of starting a family one day, Ezra had just assumed that was going to be it – _one _day. Someday, certainly not today! _

_However as the day progressed and the idea began to settle into his mind, Ezra couldn't help his overactive and romanticised imagination spiralling into the possibilities that could lay with Aria being pregnant. A baby would definitely change things, but now could be the perfect time! And Aria would look so beautiful with a baby bump…_

_Finally the short-hand reached five o'clock and Ezra practically raced out of Rosewood High School, determined to get to the drugstore and then to Aria as fast as humanly possible. _

"_Why the hurry Ezra?" Ella Montgomery smirked as she stepped in front of Ezra just as he was about to leave the school's main building. Ezra's eyes grew wide as he stood in front of his mother-in-law and gulped. Despite Ella welcoming him into the family for years now, Ezra still couldn't help but feel a little intimidated by the tiny woman with a temper almost as fiery as Aria's._

"_Oh, no reason. Just eager for the weekend." Ezra attempted his best at sounding casual, despite feeling as if his heart was about to pound its way right out of his chest._

"_Well, just make sure you don't have _too_ much fun this weekend." Ella cryptically smiled whilst shooting Ezra a look that either implied a warning or a joke. Ezra was never sure._

_Eventually after escaping Aria's mother, racing to his car only to discover he'd left his keys back in his desk, struggling against the peak-hour slog of traffic, and what was possibly the longest line Ezra had ever encountered at the drugstore checkout, he finally found himself charging breathlessly through the door of apartment 3B._

"_Aria! I've got it!" Ezra gasped, holding up the white paper bag in one hand while clutching his heaving chest with the other. He looked up to discover Aria walking slowly, cautiously towards him…with something that resembled a white stick in her hand._

"_Is that…" Ezra's loud breathing suddenly stilled and he froze, unable to finish his sentence._

_Aria nodded, her fingers trembling slightly as she handed the object to Ezra. "I'm sorry, I couldn't wait so I asked Mom to buy me one…she had a free period at two." Aria whispered, her words falling through the air like snow._

_Ezra could barely hear her though; his eyes were fixed upon the two pink lines that lay etched upon the tiny screen of the pregnancy test. His vision began to cloud and tears trickled down his cheeks. He looked down at Aria, and roamed his eyes over her flawless figure. Her beautiful, dark hair was messily tied back in a bun and she was dressed simply in sweatpants and a leopard print t-shirt, yet to Ezra she had never looked more stunning. His gaze settled upon Aria's toned stomach and he felt a sudden fluttery sensation float through all the way through his body and down to his toes. _

"_Is this real?" Ezra whispered back, his fingers intertwining with Aria's as they both held the stick between their hands._

_Aria nodded, her own tears now falling. "We're having a baby, Ezra!" She began laughing joyfully as tears ran down her cheeks, glistening in the glow of the afternoon light._

"Daddy?" Ezra jumped, a little startled as he felt the soft embrace of his daughter gripping his right leg. He looked down upon the tiny brunette, who was staring up at him curiously. "I'm thirsty."

Ezra chuckled before reaching down to swoop his daughter up into the air and into his arms, causing a delighted squeal to resound throughout the morning air. "Well, let's get you a bottle of milk then." Ezra held his daughter on his side while singlehandedly opening the refrigerator and pulling out an already-prepared bottle. He then placed it in the microwave and kissed his daughter's nose while they waited patiently for the microwave to beep.

Ezra smiled softly to himself as he felt his daughter rest her tiny head on his shoulder. The little girl puffed up her cheeks before releasing a tiny, almost inaudible sigh. "I miss Mommy."

Ezra's forehead furrowed. "I know Chloe, but you're a big girl now. You can drink out of a bottle." He opened the microwave and passed the bottle to his daughter, who eagerly grabbed it, holding the bottle between her two hands and began suckling on the warm milk.

Suddenly the front doorbell rang and a colossal crash, followed by a few more bangs and yelps resonated from the hallway. Ezra quickly placed Chloe down on the ground and stumbled out into the hallway, searching for any casualties.

"Liam?" Ezra called out in a slight panic.

"It's okay Dad! I'm fine!" The little boy suddenly bounded out, hopping on one leg. "I found the mop." Ezra looked to his left and into the living room where a mop and an empty bucket were lying hazardously on the floor. "I wanted to be the first to open the door!" Liam exclaimed, his enthusiasm showing as he bounced from one foot to the other. Ezra chuckled and shook his head, wondering where on earth his son got so much energy from.

The doorbell rang again, and Ezra looked up at the door and then back down at his pants. He was still dressed in his pyjamas, in fact they _all_ were. Ezra sighed, and nodded to Liam who let out an excited cheer before practically leaping the last five metres to reach the front door. Ezra turned around as he heard the gentle patter of small feet following him down the hallway. He smiled as he felt the familiar touch of Chloe's arm wrapping around his leg once more. "Looks like we've got a visitor, Chloe." Ezra explained before easily picking the girl up, whose hands were still tightly gripping her bottle.

As Liam stood up on his toes to reach the handle and open the huge, wooden door, a cold breeze rushed through the hallway and a few remaining autumn leaves floated through the doorway. Ezra felt Chloe shiver slightly at the chilly temperature, and he made a mental note to call the electrician to fix the house's heating. The seasons were changing and winter was certainly setting in.

At the familiar sound of the large door creaking open, followed by the brushing of winter boots against the front doormat, Ezra and Chloe turned around expectantly.

Chloe let out a small gasp and promptly detached her lips from her bottle, causing it to crash loudly on the floor. "Mommy?"

**Just wanted to give a shout out to alyssbliss on Tumblr for giving me the name Liam! I was struggling so much to come up with a good boy's name (fun fact: I almost named him _Riley_. Another fun fact: after that I almost named him _Connor. _That would've been a complete mess haha).**

**Oh and if you wanna follow me on Tumblr, I'm ezraschickpeas :)**

**Please review! I'd love to know what you all think and if you had any suggestions or anything!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Thank you so much for the reviews! I really enjoy reading what you guys think. A couple of you were confused as to where Aria is...well I think things will make a bit more sense after this chapter. **

**Oh and I don't know if I mentioned this before but italicised bits are flashbacks.**

**Hope you enjoy!**

**I don't own Pretty Little Liars...**

"Chloe! Hey, baby!" Spencer Hastings chirped enthusiastically to the toddler situated in Ezra's arms as she stepped through the doorway. The little girl squealed happily and extended her tiny arms out, wriggling away from her father in an effort to reach Spencer. Spencer giggled and took the girl from Ezra's embrace and sat her on the side of her hip before placing a gentle kiss on Chloe's wispy, dark hair. After doing so, Spencer looked down to discover another pair of eyes staring up at her, also wide with curiosity and engagement.

"And how are you, Liam?" Spencer greeted the boy who was bouncing around on his toes in eagerness.

"I'm good! I'm taller already!" Liam exclaimed animatedly, producing a laugh from both Spencer and Ezra.

"You most certainly are! You might be taller than your dad soon!" Spencer replied with equal volumes of enthusiasm.

Liam shook his head wisely. "Don't be silly." Spencer laughed again.

After greeting both children, Spencer lifted her gaze to the man who stood before her, the one still dressed in his pyjamas despite it being close to eleven in the morning, and had what looked like dustings of flour covering his shirt. "Ezra." Spencer spoke his name softly, allowing the syllables to balance delicately on her lips. She stared into his ocean-blue eyes, willing herself not to look away, and silently asked him the question they both knew neither could utter out loud. _How are you…really?_

For a wavering second, Spencer saw a flicker of emotion peek out beneath the façade of "_fine"_ Ezra put forth. And then just as quickly, it was gone, replaced by a diverted gaze, a cleared throat and a bright smile. _Perhaps some questions are just too hard to face_.

"Come inside Spence, and Liam, can you shut the door?" Ezra beckoned Spencer inside. The world outside looked suspiciously dark, in an almost apocalyptic, end-of-the-world kind of way. The last of autumn's leaves were spiralling along the driveway as the wind picked up force.

"It's definitely getting stormy out there. I couldn't believe how hard the rain was pouring down when I was driving over here." Spencer explained as she one-handedly placed her handbag and folded, wet umbrella down. "Wow, it's pretty cold in here too! You really should get this heating fixed, Ezra. Hasn't Aria been nagging you for months about it?"

Ezra nodded. "I know, I really should've just done it months ago but I'll call the electrician and get him in first thing Monday morning."

Spencer nodded in approval. Feeling a slight tugging on her hair, Spencer looked down at little Chloe to see the girl pouting her lips. "Bottle."

Confused, Spencer looked from Chloe to Ezra. "Does she need a bottle?"

Ezra's face lit up in recollection and he shook his head slightly, before bending down to the floor and picking up the little girl's bottle. He inspected it suspiciously. "I should really wash the nipple first." Ezra murmured before treading back down the hallway, towards the kitchen.

Liam grabbed a hold of Spencer's hand and began dragging together both Chloe and Spencer, following after his father. Spencer laughed as she watched the little boy lunge forward with every step, only to be slowed down by Spencer's 'sluggish' pace. The boy never let go of Spencer's hand though.

Walking into the kitchen, Spencer could immediately tell something had gone wrong. Remnants of flour could be seen scattered across both the floor and the bench tops, and a sticky yellowish sheen clung to some appliances. "What happened in here?" Spencer asked a little worriedly, her obsessive cleaning tendencies kicking into overdrive.

Ezra crinkled up his forehead. "Well, Chloe and Liam decided to surprise me this morning…by making breakfast. All. By. Themselves." Ezra started chuckling and shook his head at the two children.

"I see…and you didn't get around to cleaning the mess up?"

Ezra's mouth stood agape for a moment, before he swiftly shut it. "I – I cleaned most of it up!" He protested.

Spencer laughed. "Well, I can help finish. But first, who wants to help me carry some things in from the car?"

Liam eagerly shot up his hand before promptly racing out the kitchen before anyone could say a word. Ezra and Spencer let out another laugh. Chloe simply placed her head down on Spencer's shoulder and snuggled into the side of her neck, causing the brunette to smile as a fluttery feeling washed over her.

"We'll be back in a moment." Spencer promised Ezra before walking both her and Chloe back down the hallway. She picked up her umbrella and opened the contraption, before holding it high above her and Chloe's heads and walking out the front door and towards her car.

The rain was pouring a lot harder now, and Spencer called out to Liam in concern. "Liam? Come under the umbrella!"

Liam was already waiting by the car however, his hand jiggling the locked car door handle. He didn't seem fazed by the rain at all, despite his clothes and hair already looking completely drenched. Spencer quickly pressed the unlock button on her electronic key and set Chloe down on her feet, though making sure the girl was still protected by the covering of the umbrella. Chloe grabbed a hold of Spencer's hand and stuck her thumb in her mouth, seeming to relish in the closeness of Spencer's presence.

Liam opened the front passenger side door for Spencer, and made room for her to bend down and retrieve her belongings. In one hand, she held a big bouquet of flowers, and in the other, a shopping bag. "Alright, let's get back inside! It's freezing out here!" Spencer exclaimed as Liam shut the car door for her. The three of them hurried inside, glad for the house's shelter from the wind and rain.

When the trio walked back into the kitchen, Chloe and Spencer a little wet, and Liam looking like he had just jumped into a swimming pool, Ezra immediately froze. The glass of orange juice he was consuming stilled, and was placed back onto the bench top.

Seeing his facial expression, Spencer immediately began apologising. "I'm so sorry, Ezra. Liam ran out ahead, and before I knew it, he was standing out under the rain. I can give him a bath though, and warm him - "

Ezra didn't seem to be listening however, and Spencer stopped, following his gaze to the big bouquet of flowers that were in her hands. Self-consciously, she stepped forward and placed them on the marble bench top.

"Daffodils. Aria's favourite." Ezra murmured, his fingertips extending to touch the delicate petals.

Spencer nodded. "I bought her daffodils when both Liam and Chloe were born, so I figured it was a bit of a tradition now."

Ezra let out a small smile and raised his glass of juice back up to his lips. "And what's in there?" He asked, gesturing to the bag in Spencer's right hand.

Spencer paused for a moment. _Maybe she shouldn't…_ She bit her lip and cast a quick look at Liam and Chloe, and then back to Ezra. He was watching her, expectantly. Spencer nodded before reaching her arm into the shopping bag and slowly pulled out two tiny, woollen mittens. "For the new baby." Spencer smiled softly.

"_So…I want your opinion on something, Spence." Aria bit her lip a little apprehensively as she turned to face the taller brunette. In was mid-July and the two girls were sitting on Aria and Ezra's bed, relishing in the rare quiet of the house. Ezra had taken Liam and Chloe to the nearby swimming pool, so for the first time in a very long while, Spencer and Aria were having a little 'Sparia' time. _

_Spencer nodded encouragingly, and crossed her legs underneath her so that she was sitting upright. _

"_Well, I've been thinking a lot lately…" Aria's voice dropped down to a whisper, despite the fact they were the only ones remaining in the house. "I think I want another baby, Spence." _

_Spencer raised her eyebrows in surprise. "Really? I thought you and Ezra were just planning on the two?"_

_Aria nodded. "We were…and that's why I'm so nervous about approaching Ezra. Two kids was always the plan…but I think I really want this."_

_Spencer squinted her eyes and gave Aria a look. "You do realise you and Ezra have _never_ done anything to plan, right?"_

_Aria laughed. "I suppose you're right. How do you think I should bring it up?"_

"_With pie?" Spencer giggled. "I remember when we were still in high school and that was like your code word for sex."_

_Aria's eyes widened and she spluttered. "Spence?! You knew?" _

"_We _all_ knew. Come on, you were so not subtle about it. 'Oh, Ezra babe, let's make sure we stop and get some key lime pie before we go home!'" Spencer winked exaggeratedly, imitating Aria with a high pitched, theatrical voice. _

_Aria shook her head and laughed. "You're unbelievable. No, but seriously, do you think Ezra's going to agree?" Aria asked, her face suddenly serious._

_Spencer stopped giggling too and she wrapped her left arm around the smaller girl's shoulders. "Absolutely. I can guarantee Ezra would do _anything_ in this world to make you happy."_

Spencer's heart fluttered with nostalgia as her mind travelled back to that day. Afterwards, Aria and Spencer had gotten a little carried away, making shopping lists of new baby essentials, planning the all-important baby shower, and had even begun brainstorming baby names (the pair ignoring the obvious fact Aria wasn't even pregnant yet).

"Baby?" Spencer looked down to see Chloe's eyes staring back up at hers, filled with puzzlement.

"Yes. Do you remember your mommy telling you about the new baby?" Spencer gently replied.

"Is Mommy with the baby?"

Ezra nodded, stepping forth. "Mommy's with the baby. We'll go see her later but first, I think we need to clean this kitchen up!"

Spencer nodded vigorously. "Definitely. And Liam, if you go upstairs and start getting unchanged, I'll make you a hot bath. We don't want you getting sick." Spencer smiled at the little boy whose wet clothes were clinging to his body like glue.

Just as Spencer was about to follow Liam out the kitchen, Ezra loudly gulped down the last of his orange juice and then placed the empty glass in the sink. With a raised brow, Spencer pointed to the other glass which was sitting on the bench top, completely full to the brim. "Someone's thirsty today." She teased with a laugh.

Ezra followed Spencer's gaze and stared at the glass for a few seconds. Silently, he then grabbed it and poured the contents down the drain. "Liam poured it for Aria." Ezra mumbled quietly before walking past Spencer and following his son up the stairs.

**Okay, please let me know what you guys think or if you have any suggestions or anything! I'm still debating whether I should keep this a mini story (have it maybe 5 ish chapters) or making it a lot longer. Let me know what you think! :)**


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